The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Leucanthemum plant, botanically known as Leucanthemum maximum and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Sunny Side Upxe2x80x99.
The new Leucanthemum is a naturally-occurring whole plant mutation of an unidentified selection of Leucanthemum maximum, not patented. The new Leucanthemum was discovered by the Inventor in a controlled environment in Warmond, The Netherlands, within a population of plants of the unidentified selection of Leucanthemum maximum in 1998. The selection of this new Leucanthemum was based on its inflorescence form and large disc. Compared to plants of the parent selection, plants of the new Leucanthemum have many more ray and disc florets per inflorescence.
Asexual reproduction of the new Leucanthemum by vegetative tip cuttings was first conducted in Warmond, The Netherlands in 1997. Asexual reproducton by cuttings has shown that the unique features of this new Leucanthemum are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.
The cultivar Sunny Side Up has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength, and/or light level, without, however, any variance in genotype.
The followng traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Sunny Side Upxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Sunny Side Upxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct Leucanthemum:
1. Upright plant habit.
2. Large daisy-type inflorescences that are about 7.5 cm in diameter.
3. White-colored ray florets and yellow-colored disc florets.